Soon to be Dr. Nancy Tarawhiti ...
Friday, July 22, 2011
The Road to Success ....
I've been enrolled in my PhD program for over a year and half and it has been the single most hardest thing I've ever undertaken in my life. I've had a fair amount of trials and struggles in my life but this has surpassed them all by far. It has tested me beyond what I thought I was capable of and has at times put me into dark places. It has been emotionally draining and left me with thoughts of despair and hopelessness. It has been a lonely road and will continue to be, but its one that I am going to endure. Its taken me a while to figure out how to endure it in such a way that makes my life a little enjoyable but I'm slowly figuring it out. I'm slower than the average PhD student (actually I'm slower than the slowest PhD student) but I'm ok with that. It will happen all in good time for me and I just need to keep breathing, keep smiling, and keep being grateful. So watch this space as I share some of my research struggles and successes.
Soon to be Dr. Nancy Tarawhiti ...
Soon to be Dr. Nancy Tarawhiti ...
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Update
So here's what ya missed (stole this line from 'Glee')
March
I attended a conference for school in Boston. My presentation was awesome and I just loved Boston. That place had a lot of history and I met so many great people. I forgot how much my accent (Yeah apparently I have one) is such a crowd pleaser. Of course once they hear it, they ask where its from (they try to guess and are ALWAYS wrong) and then they say "I've always wanted to go to New Zealand" or "I love New Zealand" or "I loved Lord of the Rings" (thinking that we are all hobbits down here). Well Boston was no exception. I went to one place called Mike's Bakery and the lady there loved my accent so much she gave me the 'try before you buy' treatment, it was a good day to be a kiwi. I really loved visiting Harvard University. I just felt so smart walking around campus and the whole colonial feel was really what I think Academics is all about. I think if I had a choice of living in the USA I'd love to live in New York or Boston.
One of the many buildings part of Harvard University Campus.
This is the owner from the Pizza place around the corner from Harvard University. We were told it was one of the best pizza joints in Boston. Once he heard my accent he told me he dated a woman from NZ and then told me he loved NZ women. He said it was the best weekend of his life (translation he had a DW with a kiwi chick) ha ha... Consequently I ordered another pizza. :)
April
Well April was my birthday and it was extremely low key. I also got tested for Celiacs disease and was told I'm borderline and that's when I started to try and change my diet to accommodate being gluten free (GF). I HATE IT!!!! The one thing I like the most is bread and especially maori bread. I have never known a maori that doesn't eat bread or even a polynesian!!! So trying to eat bread and other carbs that are GF is hideous. I absolutely hate it. I know I'm only borderline but I've had to make some changes in my life and once again I hate it. All the GF food really lacks in taste. I went to a GF and allergies show (yes it sounds like a freak show) but I soon realized that I wasn't alone in this. GF food here in NZ is so expensive and takes a little getting use to. NZ is famous for its pies and I've had to cut that out heavily, and once again I hate it. So I'm taking a shine to salads and veges. My body has been yoyoing in weight and just being able to adapt to different varieties of food and some days I just won't eat cos there is nothing that quite satisfies the hunger. A very nice lady that I work with has a Celiac husband and daughter and she felt sorry for me and brought me in a whole bunch of groceries. I was very humbled, its like she jumped straight out of the visiting teaching manual. However, she is not LDS but just a nice caring person. She felt really sorry for me that I wouldn't be able to drink beer. I told her I think I would be ok.
May
My friends Beth, Kristi and Marisa came to visit me here in NZ. They came for a week and we fit in so much. We visited the Museum, Sky Tower, The Shire (Hobbiton), Waitomo Caves, Tamaki Village, Luge, Fat Dog Cafe, Mt Maunganui, Squid Row Pub, Otara Markets, Blues Vs Chiefs Rugby Game, church and then they flew home. It was a great week and we fit in so much and it was so great to have them come visit. I really missed them when they left. I then had to kick in my school work. I'm trying to write my Lit Review chapter of my dissertation and it is kicking my trash. School is my life now. No more playing, no more trips, no more anything cos school is where it is at.
This is a shot of us at the beach just as the sun was setting. This looks like a real family picture (ha ha) but it was put on the timer so we sat still until it went off.
This is us at the Michael Savage lookout point in Auckland. Apart from one day we had the best weather ever.
June
School is still kicking my trash and I'm a little bit behind but I know I can do it. I work 2 days a week (Tues/Thurs) from 9-5 and then I do school work for at least 3 hours in the evening. Mon / Wed / Fri read and write for school from 9am - 9pm, Sat I try to put in at least 8 hours 9am - 5pm, sunday I rest and I'm in bed most nights by 10:30 at the latest cos I'm up at 4:30am preparing as I teach early morning seminary Mon-Fri. My life is full on with school but man I feel the hand of the lord in my life. I've had some amazing doors opened for me with wonderful opportunities I just now need to work hard to deserve them. It's been crazy and continues to be but no one said life would be easy.
PS. DW - dirty weekend
March
I attended a conference for school in Boston. My presentation was awesome and I just loved Boston. That place had a lot of history and I met so many great people. I forgot how much my accent (Yeah apparently I have one) is such a crowd pleaser. Of course once they hear it, they ask where its from (they try to guess and are ALWAYS wrong) and then they say "I've always wanted to go to New Zealand" or "I love New Zealand" or "I loved Lord of the Rings" (thinking that we are all hobbits down here). Well Boston was no exception. I went to one place called Mike's Bakery and the lady there loved my accent so much she gave me the 'try before you buy' treatment, it was a good day to be a kiwi. I really loved visiting Harvard University. I just felt so smart walking around campus and the whole colonial feel was really what I think Academics is all about. I think if I had a choice of living in the USA I'd love to live in New York or Boston.
One of the many buildings part of Harvard University Campus.
This is the owner from the Pizza place around the corner from Harvard University. We were told it was one of the best pizza joints in Boston. Once he heard my accent he told me he dated a woman from NZ and then told me he loved NZ women. He said it was the best weekend of his life (translation he had a DW with a kiwi chick) ha ha... Consequently I ordered another pizza. :)
April
Well April was my birthday and it was extremely low key. I also got tested for Celiacs disease and was told I'm borderline and that's when I started to try and change my diet to accommodate being gluten free (GF). I HATE IT!!!! The one thing I like the most is bread and especially maori bread. I have never known a maori that doesn't eat bread or even a polynesian!!! So trying to eat bread and other carbs that are GF is hideous. I absolutely hate it. I know I'm only borderline but I've had to make some changes in my life and once again I hate it. All the GF food really lacks in taste. I went to a GF and allergies show (yes it sounds like a freak show) but I soon realized that I wasn't alone in this. GF food here in NZ is so expensive and takes a little getting use to. NZ is famous for its pies and I've had to cut that out heavily, and once again I hate it. So I'm taking a shine to salads and veges. My body has been yoyoing in weight and just being able to adapt to different varieties of food and some days I just won't eat cos there is nothing that quite satisfies the hunger. A very nice lady that I work with has a Celiac husband and daughter and she felt sorry for me and brought me in a whole bunch of groceries. I was very humbled, its like she jumped straight out of the visiting teaching manual. However, she is not LDS but just a nice caring person. She felt really sorry for me that I wouldn't be able to drink beer. I told her I think I would be ok.
May
My friends Beth, Kristi and Marisa came to visit me here in NZ. They came for a week and we fit in so much. We visited the Museum, Sky Tower, The Shire (Hobbiton), Waitomo Caves, Tamaki Village, Luge, Fat Dog Cafe, Mt Maunganui, Squid Row Pub, Otara Markets, Blues Vs Chiefs Rugby Game, church and then they flew home. It was a great week and we fit in so much and it was so great to have them come visit. I really missed them when they left. I then had to kick in my school work. I'm trying to write my Lit Review chapter of my dissertation and it is kicking my trash. School is my life now. No more playing, no more trips, no more anything cos school is where it is at.
This is a shot of us at the beach just as the sun was setting. This looks like a real family picture (ha ha) but it was put on the timer so we sat still until it went off.
This is us at the Michael Savage lookout point in Auckland. Apart from one day we had the best weather ever.
June
School is still kicking my trash and I'm a little bit behind but I know I can do it. I work 2 days a week (Tues/Thurs) from 9-5 and then I do school work for at least 3 hours in the evening. Mon / Wed / Fri read and write for school from 9am - 9pm, Sat I try to put in at least 8 hours 9am - 5pm, sunday I rest and I'm in bed most nights by 10:30 at the latest cos I'm up at 4:30am preparing as I teach early morning seminary Mon-Fri. My life is full on with school but man I feel the hand of the lord in my life. I've had some amazing doors opened for me with wonderful opportunities I just now need to work hard to deserve them. It's been crazy and continues to be but no one said life would be easy.
PS. DW - dirty weekend
Saturday, February 13, 2010
All things rugby ...
So I went to the first Super 14 rugby game for the 2010 season. It was at the North Harbour Stadium in Auckland and the Blues were playing the Hurricances. I was so excited cos it has been YEARS since I've been to a rugby game at home. Traffic was crazy getting there cos it was Friday night and getting over that Harbour bridge (which is the one I bungeed, off see previous post) can be a nightmare especially in peak hour traffic. Everyone was getting anxious with the traffic but I on the other hand was just loving the idea of going to the rugby. I was feeling all nostalgic thinking about growing up in NZ and how rugby is definitely part of who I am. We got our tickets for free through some promo and we were in the 6th row from the field. I loved seeing kiwis getting all excited going to the game, the boys outside the park drinking out of there van, kids waving flags, face painting, the ladies wanting to get into the stadium to check out the players and a mince pie with a bottle of L&P. It was a beautiful summers evening with no breeze yet it was in the evening enough so that it wasn't too hot.
Before the game started they had a helicopter land on the field it was kinda exciting. It was the army and they dropped off "Michael Jones". He has and always will be my favourite rugby player so I was extremely excited for that moment. That in itself was worth going to the game. They introduced him and of course I got up with a hiss and roar. People around me were like "Who is that". All I can say is "rookies".
Here are the Blues warming up ready to get going and they had a cracker first 20 mins. They broke the Hurricanes back line a couple of times, one leading to a try and it was pretty exciting.
I managed to snap a pic of Joe Rockococko hanging out on the wing. He had a quiet game but made one impressive run that nearly led to a try but the Blues stuffed it up right before their try line. Unfortunately the Blues had a decent lead at one point and then got complacent and they made several basic handling errors. It was really frustrating at times to watch.
There was a lineout right in front of us so I managed to snap another pic and this is where the blues were on attack and they never capitalised on it so they lost all that field advantage and came up empty handed.
Blues scrum right by their try line thanks to a great breakthrough however once again they messed up and no try. The Hurricanes ended up winning the game 34-20. They deserved to win and they made less mistakes. They clawed back into the game and then showed some real hunger for the win. Go the Canes!!! They had some solid tackles and Piri had a great kicking game in the second half.
The game was awesome and I'm just looking forward to the rest of the season and getting excited for the NRL to start. I forgot how awesome footy season is in NZ. In a roundup of the weekend Crusaders won, Chiefs squeaked through with a 1 pt win (still not a Donald fan) and we are in full swing. Eden Park is still under rennovation for the world cup and over budget (surprise surprise). Some businessmen can't budget a decent cup of coffee. Last rugby news is that they are changing the school terms next year to coincide with the Rugby World Cup. Gotta love our priorities!!!
Before the game started they had a helicopter land on the field it was kinda exciting. It was the army and they dropped off "Michael Jones". He has and always will be my favourite rugby player so I was extremely excited for that moment. That in itself was worth going to the game. They introduced him and of course I got up with a hiss and roar. People around me were like "Who is that". All I can say is "rookies".
Here are the Blues warming up ready to get going and they had a cracker first 20 mins. They broke the Hurricanes back line a couple of times, one leading to a try and it was pretty exciting.
I managed to snap a pic of Joe Rockococko hanging out on the wing. He had a quiet game but made one impressive run that nearly led to a try but the Blues stuffed it up right before their try line. Unfortunately the Blues had a decent lead at one point and then got complacent and they made several basic handling errors. It was really frustrating at times to watch.
There was a lineout right in front of us so I managed to snap another pic and this is where the blues were on attack and they never capitalised on it so they lost all that field advantage and came up empty handed.
Blues scrum right by their try line thanks to a great breakthrough however once again they messed up and no try. The Hurricanes ended up winning the game 34-20. They deserved to win and they made less mistakes. They clawed back into the game and then showed some real hunger for the win. Go the Canes!!! They had some solid tackles and Piri had a great kicking game in the second half.
The game was awesome and I'm just looking forward to the rest of the season and getting excited for the NRL to start. I forgot how awesome footy season is in NZ. In a roundup of the weekend Crusaders won, Chiefs squeaked through with a 1 pt win (still not a Donald fan) and we are in full swing. Eden Park is still under rennovation for the world cup and over budget (surprise surprise). Some businessmen can't budget a decent cup of coffee. Last rugby news is that they are changing the school terms next year to coincide with the Rugby World Cup. Gotta love our priorities!!!
Friday, February 12, 2010
Today's gonna be a good day ...
I've decided that today's gonna be a good day, and every other day for that matter.
Friday, January 22, 2010
What the hell have I been up to - 2009 / 2010 Update
Well its been ages since I've blogged and I wanted to post what I've been up to, so here goes:
August / September
I was still trying to make the adjustment to being home. It wasn't as easy as I thought. I missed my friends, teaching, Provo, gym with Ande and Kjell, shopping at Ross, Costco and Old Navy and having a routine that I love. The food is so rich and wonderful here that I found comfort in it and put on about 7-10 lbs. I still haven't lost any of that weight but its all good. I was staying in Hamilton and then travelling to Auckland for a change and sorting out school. This was a really hard month but learned none the less.
I got a part-time job teaching at Worldwide School of English in Auckland city in New Zealand. The job was great and I was loving being back in the classroom. It was driving my crazy not doing anything so the work was just what I needed. The teachers there were so great to work with. It was so different from teaching in an LDS environment e.g., they had pub night, teachers and students would go have drinks, and students hung out for breaks to have a cigarette and coffee. Not only was the job good but the hours and money were great too.
October / November
Got accepted into the Auckland University of Technology (AUT) in the Applied Linguistics PhD program. I have a great supervisor who is so flexible, simplistic and just awesome to work with. I love the school and the application process was so much more simplistic than applying for a PhD program in the states. Some things I like about the application process was: the application is a 2 page application form, you are notified of the outcome within a month, you are notified by email, mail and text and my supervisor looked over my application before submission to ensure the best possible outcome. My program is solely research with no class requirements. I study from home, school, down country and even overseas. Another great thing is that I have access to some great financial assistance. The downside is that I have to be totally self motivated and organized which is not always easy to do. However I'm excited to be here getting my PhD.
I also took a quick trip to re-energize myself and it was great.
December
December 5th I performed with the CCNZ alumni maori culture group for the Church College Closing celebration. It was such a great evening and just full of nostalgia. I cried through 50% of the performance just thinking of all the great memories that Church College provided me. I grew up in the dorms, went to school there and have such great life time friends from it all. It was great to see so many people at the concert and it was awesome to do maori culture again. I absolutely loved it.
On the 18th I flew to Gold Coast Australia to spend Christmas with my brother Sinclair and his family and mum and dad. I arrived to hot sweltering weather which was awesome and we went straight to the water park and swam most of the day. My trip consisted mostly of beach, pool and eating. I still have that 10 lbs I found and I can truly say I'm officially a pumpleduff!!!! This food is killing me (literally) so I need to make a change there. My body misses Kjell to push me and Ande to support me!!!
August / September
I was still trying to make the adjustment to being home. It wasn't as easy as I thought. I missed my friends, teaching, Provo, gym with Ande and Kjell, shopping at Ross, Costco and Old Navy and having a routine that I love. The food is so rich and wonderful here that I found comfort in it and put on about 7-10 lbs. I still haven't lost any of that weight but its all good. I was staying in Hamilton and then travelling to Auckland for a change and sorting out school. This was a really hard month but learned none the less.
I got a part-time job teaching at Worldwide School of English in Auckland city in New Zealand. The job was great and I was loving being back in the classroom. It was driving my crazy not doing anything so the work was just what I needed. The teachers there were so great to work with. It was so different from teaching in an LDS environment e.g., they had pub night, teachers and students would go have drinks, and students hung out for breaks to have a cigarette and coffee. Not only was the job good but the hours and money were great too.
October / November
Got accepted into the Auckland University of Technology (AUT) in the Applied Linguistics PhD program. I have a great supervisor who is so flexible, simplistic and just awesome to work with. I love the school and the application process was so much more simplistic than applying for a PhD program in the states. Some things I like about the application process was: the application is a 2 page application form, you are notified of the outcome within a month, you are notified by email, mail and text and my supervisor looked over my application before submission to ensure the best possible outcome. My program is solely research with no class requirements. I study from home, school, down country and even overseas. Another great thing is that I have access to some great financial assistance. The downside is that I have to be totally self motivated and organized which is not always easy to do. However I'm excited to be here getting my PhD.
I also took a quick trip to re-energize myself and it was great.
December
December 5th I performed with the CCNZ alumni maori culture group for the Church College Closing celebration. It was such a great evening and just full of nostalgia. I cried through 50% of the performance just thinking of all the great memories that Church College provided me. I grew up in the dorms, went to school there and have such great life time friends from it all. It was great to see so many people at the concert and it was awesome to do maori culture again. I absolutely loved it.
On the 18th I flew to Gold Coast Australia to spend Christmas with my brother Sinclair and his family and mum and dad. I arrived to hot sweltering weather which was awesome and we went straight to the water park and swam most of the day. My trip consisted mostly of beach, pool and eating. I still have that 10 lbs I found and I can truly say I'm officially a pumpleduff!!!! This food is killing me (literally) so I need to make a change there. My body misses Kjell to push me and Ande to support me!!!
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